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Leah Cooper

I have always struggled with knowing what career path to follow but i have always loved writing and watching films so i have been looking into many different paths that i can go down and one that really interested me was film reviews or film critic so on this page there is opportunities i have looked into and also research on how to become a film critic and research on film reviews.

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Opportunities

Skills review

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Scriptwriter

This is your File description. Concisely describe the content of your file and make sure to highlight your contact details for further questions and remarks.

Producer

This is your File description. Concisely describe the content of your file and make sure to highlight your contact details for further questions and remarks.

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Film review

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Film critic (how to)

This is your File description. Concisely describe the content of your file and make sure to highlight your contact details for further questions and remarks.

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9 Tips for writing a film review

1: watch the film

Once is necessary, Twice is recommended. you should take notes because it helps later when you are writing your review. You can also then remember what you were thinking in the moment.

2: Express your opinions and support your criticism

Professionals do not shy away from writing what they thought, whether they thought the movie was good bad or if they were indifferent to it. Lots of people who read film reviews rely on reviewers who have similar tastes. It helps to decide if the reader wants to spend their time and money on a film. Professionals have watched alot of movies and so they can explain how they go to their criticism. be sure to back everything up with specifics- a silly plot a disappointing performance, amazing cinematography.

3: consider your audience

knowing your readers can help you decide which parts of the movie to highlight.you should also adjust your writing style to fit who oyu are writing for.

4: The actors

any movie goers will want to see a movie because their favorite actor is in it. that means there should be a section where you talk a little about performances: seasoned actors in a new role, amazing performances from rising stars. If someone was brilliant even if the script was not.

5: Directors, cinematographers, special effects.

This is where your film geekiness can really shine. you can tell your readers about highlights or mistakes from directors, cinematographers, costume design, etc. you can say what worked, what surprised, what fell short of expectations.

6: No spoilers

Give your readers some rough idea about the plot but be very careful not to include any spoilers. the point of a good review is to get people interested in going to the movie.

7: Study the professionals

As with all writing, the more you read the better you will be. When you read film reviews that you like (or don't like) consider why. use your critical eye to think about why one reviewer has many followers and why another has hardly any. Also read the publications where you would like your writing to appear as a template for your writing. Also don't forget to read the submission guidelines.

8: Reread, rewrite and edit.

Your opinions will not be take seriously if you misspell anything or cannot put together a grammatically correct sentence. take extra time your spelling and edit your piece.

9: Find your voice

The best reviewers have a distinct personality that comes across in their writing. T.his does not happen overnight, take very opportunity to write as an opportunity to develop your own style and voice that will grab a readers attention and keep them coming back for more.

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10 questions to ask before writing a movie review

1: Is this film part of a franchise or bigger connected universe and how does this film fit in with the others?

2: Is the plot based on a novel, real life events or a remake?

3: Did the writer make the plot clear and engaging?

4: Are there too many unnecessary details?

5: Who is the film aimed at?

6: Is it worth comparing it to similar movies?

7: How does that camera angles and shot keep you engaged?

8: Is there a sole character that's entertaining or is there a serious issue to focus on?

9: Was it a good choice in casting?

10: What is the general feel of the movie?

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PRACTICE FILM REVIEW:

Pirates of the Caribbean Deadman’s chest.

                                                                   Standing the test of time.

The second movie in this franchise is arguably one of the best. To me the first three movies in this saga have stood the test of time.

Firstly, I believe this because they feel like they could of come out today in fact I don’t think there has been a film in recent years as good as the pirates of the Caribbean. All three movies came out over 10 years ago and you could never tell, there production value on special effects is superb. The effects on curse of the black pearl are amazing especially showing the living dead crew and it is a movie from 2003 but they really step it up in Deadman’s chest with Davey Jones and his crew they look for nominal and real, also the kraken at the end for 2006 looks exceptional.

Secondly some of the funniest moments through out the franchise happen in Deadman’s chest there are scenes with the cannibals which me and my mum still quote now, there is the part when they find out about jacks black spot which is hilarious and this is also when jack gets his jar of dirt which has me grinning while it write this. There are also some hilarious throw backs to the first film with ‘hide the rum’ when he sees Elizabeth is there. I’m not taking away with how great the third movie is either because there are some fantastic and belly laugh moments in that film too but this film just tips it for me even characters of Davey  Jones crew have there funny moments in this film and don’t forget the part on the island where they are fight for the key.

In contrast to the humour there is also some very endearing moments that help drive the story and the character motivations for example the Will’s father story line is beautiful and it complete changes how the character goes on from there. Also jack goes from only caring about the black pearl and him self to going back to help them at the end.

This brings me on to the amazing character development through out this film, all the characters goes from one basic want like will to be with Elizabeth, Elizabeth being the damsel that always needs saving and jack just wanting the pearl to becoming very complex characters, in Deadman’s chest they all change a lot, Elizabeth goes from being the one who needs saving into the one who ultimately does the saving to will discovering his father and that there is more to life that just a girl and we find out why jack is a captain and his development from scared running pirate to someone who cares and wants to fight.

To sum everything up I believe  these movies to still be some of the best adventure movies out there with deadmans chest being the stand out film with worlds end only falling behind just slightly and the curse of the black pearl being a wonderful start to a fantastic trilogy.

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Feed back from review

Please give me your feedback on my reviews it will help me with future reviews and also include any films you would like me to write about.

Thanks for submitting!

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Screenwriting competitions and courses:

The first screen writing competition I have looked at Is called script pipeline 2020

It is quite a high end screenwriting competition that I would certainly look into entering in the future. The winner gets $25.000 and introductions to managers and producers to try and get their projects off the ground and made into an eventual film. I wouldn’t be able to enter it this year I do not have a feature length script, all my scripts are for short movies and this competition is for feature length however now that I know that it is out there I can prep and work for either entering in 2021 or 2022. They even use entries via film freeway which is something I am now familiar with due to a university project so I will defiantly have quite easy access to enter this competition when I think I am ready. 

https://scriptpipeline.com/shop/screenwriting-contest?gclid=CjwKCAjw9L_tBRBXEiwAOWVVCTyIPyfzNuDilxHDgzK7eJD3EFu_srKADCq7_kyB_05bnbJ_6LvPixoCNsoQAvD_BwE



I have found a free online screenwriting course through the bbc writers room. And it is from a creative writing professor from the university of east Anglia. I have 28 days to complete it and I started it on the 23rd of October so it will be over by the 6th of November.  If I want to do the course at my own pace then I will have to pay.  I will keep a journal of my progress on this course.


Film festival London have a 10 minute screenplay competition which is way more feasible for me currently rather than the script pipeline one, they want a script form 5 to 10 pages and the closing date for submissions is the 9th of January. This give me plenty of time to write a script and improve upon It to possibly submit it to this competition. There are even a few scripts that I currently have that I could improve on and submit. I will look at getting feed back on some old scripts and a new one to see if can get them to a really good standard to submit them to this competition. It is also patterned with filmfreeway so I can submit through them. Film festival London also do a 3 minute script writing competition which I can also definitely look at entering as well. It has the same deadline as 10 minute competition.

https://www.ukfilmfestival.com/3-minute-script-competition/

https://www.ukfilmfestival.com/10-minute-screenplay-competition/

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Industry contact book

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Evaluation

Overall i have enjoyed this project, looking into different career paths i could potentially go into and learning more about them has been very enjoyable. There are definitely parts i find easier than others, research and writing are my strengths but finding films to work on and being on set is something i struggle with. the projects where i had to work with everyone i did enjoy though and would like to do it more. Finding projects to work on is my main issue because the roles i normally do or like to do are roles that just involve me, so i do not have many contacts and in third year that is something i am going to work on.  

I have started writing film reviews and i am really enjoying and i'm trying to get as much feed back as possible on them, this is definitely something i would like pursue future.

I really want to do more collaborative projects next year outside of uni projects and am going to work really hard to do so even if its writing scripts or reviews for other class mates projects. 


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